SkyDiving To Tony's Island
by UnpredictablyRandomOne
Summary: The final repairs are being made to Stark tower so Tony offers his island in the meantime. Only catch, they have to drop in from over 90,000 feet. What could possibly go wrong? Rated T for safety
1. Chapter 1

This is kind of a tag to my other story, Letting Go but you don't have to read it to understand this one. I had a dream in where I went sky-diving with the Avengers but it didn't turn out so pretty. Thus, I'm not in this. Anyways, I do not own the characters, just the crazy plot and the mistakes. Let me know what you all think, please? Oh! Thanks to my reviewers from Letting Go, I will take your words and keep them in mind for other stories. Thanks!

* * *

"I still don't think this is such a good idea."

After a week long discussion, the Avengers had agreed to visit Tony's private island while the last repairs were made to Stark Tower. It sounded great to Steve until Clint mentioned getting there by jumping from the plane. No landing, just sky-diving. Of course, Steve had voiced his concerns but had been outvoted by the rest of his peers. After a couple months of being contained to one place, they all felt a bit restless; what better way to release some stress than jumping out of a plane from an altitude of 90,000 feet?

"Will you please calm down, Captain, this is seriously the easiest thing you could ever do." Not one for comforting, Natasha was beginning to lose her patience with their brave leader. She had done this before but never for fun. Most of the times it was under severe duress from a mission so she never took the time to experience the thrill of free falling through the sky. "Not to mention, you're a super soldier. It's not like you're in actual danger of dying or anything."

Bruce looked over at Natasha as a thought hit him; the only one in actual danger apart from her, was Clint. This was suppose to be some kind of thrill ride but nobody would actually experience said thrill if they weren't in any real danger. Steve was an experienced soldier with amazing strength, he probably wouldn't get too hurt in the event of an accident. Tony, well, Tony would just call upon his suit and be done with it. Him, all he had to do was let the other guy take over and everything would be fine. Unless he landed on someone, then it wouldn't be so fine. Natasha and Clint would be the only ones to feel the rush of heading to their potential doom before deploying the parachute. Not thinking about any potential consequences, he voiced his thoughts.

Steve gave him an incredulous look. Apparently the captain had already figured that one out but thought it wise not to mention it.  
"He's right. If we want to do this right and make it fair for everyone, we need to make some adjustments." Tony replied standing from his seat and heading towards the front of the plane.  
"Bruce, what were you thinking?" Steve asked with a deep sigh, already knowing he was not going to like the outcome of whatever Tony was planning.  
A couple minutes later, Tony returned with several items. He had a grin which only served to make Steve more uncomfortable.

"Ok, so here's what we're going to do. Steve, you're going to be blindfolded-"

"What? Why? Look, this isn't what we had originally agreed on. Not to mention it's completely dangerous." This was definitely not going to end well...

"It's the same thing Cap, the only difference is you won't know where you're landing which will make it thrilling. We all have the comms up and working so we'll tell you when to deploy your parachute and when you're about to hit the ground. You can take it off after you land."

"That sounds fun, can I have a blindfold too?" Clint asked standing up and heading for Tony.

"Clint! This is suppose to be an activity to release stress, not add more to it!" Steve was beginning to lose control of his team but he would not give in to their crazy ideas.

"No can do Legolas. This is just for him so we can make this fair for everyone."

"Fair how? This isn't a competition, this is suppose to be fun!" This was beginning to sound like the nightmare he'd had when Clint had brought up the whole sky-diving idea. This was not good, not good at all.

"Oh, right. Sorry, Steve but I forgot to tell you about our other part of the plan. Once we land, we'll be racing to get to my mansion on the other side of the island and the winner gets to decide his or her own prize."

Steve glared at him while trying to hold back his temper. Tony was always doing things behind his back, how the hell was he suppose to trust him if he kept pulling stunts like this?

"Maybe we should just stick to the sky-diving and forget the extra challenges, Tony." Bruce said quietly, trying to side with Steve. He really shouldn't have said anything.

"I like this idea better. Now, you will be blindfolded even if we have to force you. I will not have my suit with me and Bruce here...well, there really isn't much we can do to keep him from hulking out so... he won't get a parachute."

The only noise in the plane was its own engines. Even Natasha raised an eyebrow at Tony. The blindfold was a good idea, no Iron Man was also good but no parachute for Bruce? This was starting to sound more like a suicide mission than an actual game.

"Have you lost your mind? What do you mean no parachute for Bruce? If he doesn't hulk out then he'll die and you will follow him after I deal with you!" This was the reason he hadn't agreed with sky-diving. They were going to die.

"Fifteen minutes to drop-off." The pilot announced through the speaker.

"Fine. He can have a parachute but you're still going blindfolded Steve. Let's get this on, nice and tight. We can't have you peeking, now can we? And don't worry, it's a simple game. Nobody's going to get hurt. If you'd like, you can consider this a training exercise."

Steve let out another heavy sigh as he looked out the window. He still couldn't believe Tony had his own private island, still couldn't believe they'd be spending a few days there after literally dropping in. Maybe some exercise would be good for them. He figured this was as good as it was going to get so he might as well play along. What could possibly go wrong? He put on his parachute and made sure everything was good before allowing Tony to put the blindfold on him, then the goggles over it.

The rest of the team made sure to do the same but didn't say anything when Bruce set his parachute aside. "This will be fun, right?"

Natasha, Clint and Steve smirked at the good doctor. Their amount of respect for him increasing at his sense of adventure and his defiance towards the captain's wish. It was a good thing they were going to land in a private island, nobody to get stepped on; besides a few squirrels.

The hatch began to open as Steve felt his way towards it. Somehow, he knew this would only end with getting chewed up by Fury. He felt someone steer him forward, telling him he was first so they could keep an eye on him. Just in case, of course. Clint did not make him feel at ease, not one bit.

"Here we go Captain. GO!" Clint let him go and Steve was free falling from 90,000 feet.

"How mad do you think he'll be when he finds out we're landing in mud?" Asked Bruce after Clint and Steve had gone.

"We had no idea until after we landed. You can keep a secret, right doctor?" Natasha asked indifferently before jumping out herself.

"Let's go Banner, this will be fun!" Shouted Tony as he too jumped out.

Bruce's last thought as he jumped out was that he didn't have an extra pair of pants on him.

* * *

I'm thinking just one more chapter since I'm still getting the hang of this whole publishing thing. Feedback is greatly and always appreciated. Thanks!


	2. Chapter 2

Ok, here's the next chapter in my little story. Thank you for taking the time to read and if you will be so kind, please leave a review with any advice or comments you might have for me. Thank you and enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters no matter how bad I wished I did. I am also not making any money out of this so please, don't sue me.

* * *

He was going to kill him. There was no doubt in Steve's mind that Tony had planned this from the very beginning. What had he done to get on the Iron Man's bad side?

_'Big man in a suit of armour. Take that off, what are you?'_

_'Genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist.'_

_'I know guys with none of that worth ten of you.'_

He groaned. Yes, that was probably what had begun their ongoing battle. In his defense, that was before they got to know each other, before they became a team. Why did Tony insist on making his life difficult, now? Not wanting to waste more time, he stood up, careful not to slip in the mud again. Looking around, he noticed he wasn't in just some mud hole, it stretched for what seemed like miles to the side. What kind of island was this? One would think an island belonging to Tony Stark would have nothing but the most updated technology and the fanciest furniture everywhere.

"Did you enjoy your flight, sir?"

Steve immediately took a defensive posture while looking around before he recognized the voice.

"JARVIS?" He had hit his head. There was no other explanation as to why he was hearing Tony's AI. Gently prodding his head for any obvious injuries, he came up empty.

"Yes, sir. I have been instructed to monitor everyone's status on the island in case help is needed."

Well, that solved one problem. Leave it to Tony to have the whole island wired so he could spy on...

"Is he.. can Tony see me?" Maybe he didn't want to know if he was being watched, that would just make him more uncomfortable.

"No. Mister Stark has decided to play this as fair as possible and will not be interfering with anybody's progress; just the same, I will not be able to tell you of their progress."

Steve nodded. Tony was keeping to the rules for once but Steve wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing. He might be following the rules because there was no chance of anybody else winning which might mean there were traps or things of that sort laying around. Either that or he was just to confident in himself. Yes, that sounded about right.

"If I may suggest something, sir?"

"What is it?"

"If you are considering winning this competition, you should make haste to the mansion."

He nodded once more and pulled off his parachute before asking how to get to said mansion. He began to make his way out of the mud, each step heavy and rough within the sludge. Out of nowhere, he was hit with a flashback, distant memories he hadn't thought about in awhile. His heart began to beat faster and faster as he saw his friends, all fighting to survive, fighting to defeat an evil they hoped would never return. Shots were fired, explosions could be seen everywhere along with the bodies of his fallen comrades. This was the war he had fought, why was he here again?

"Are you alright, sir?"

Slowly, the war seemed to fade away as the island came back into focus. He wasn't fighting a war, that was done. This was just a game started by his teammate, he was safe, he was ok. He noticed he was on his knees again and quickly stood up. Sighing, he nodded and kept his pace until he reached mud-less land once more. He then decided, he really didn't like mud.

"I'm fine. Do you think this can stay between us?" He asked slightly out of breath. It wasn't the trudge through the mud that left him winded but the memories. It had been seventy years, well, technically it had been less than a year for him but he didn't want his team knowing he still experienced those wretched moments from another life. It's not like they could do anything to help him, all they would do is worry and maybe doubt his leadership. Although, he figured they _would_ try to help him, they were a team after all. He also liked to think they had formed some kind of friendship. They had proved that they had each other's back and he did trust them with his life. Maybe not with his personal belongings or his privacy but his life seemed like a good start.

"Of course, sir."

Steve looked at his watch, it had only been thirty minutes since he had landed. Checking his surroundings, he quickly made his way through the trees and dense overgrowth. This was looking pretty easy, not much of an exercise.

His thoughts came to an abrupt halt as the ground disappeared, causing him to nearly fall into a deep hole; he would have fallen if it hadn't been for his quick reflexes making him grab onto the edge. Pulling himself up and over, he let out a frustrated sigh. Of course Tony would have traps set up for them.

"JARVIS, has Mister Stark set more of these things?" What kind of question was that, he knew better than to assume Tony had only planted one.

"I'm sorry sir but I can not divulge the location of the obstacles set up."

So there were more, that was for sure. And here he was thinking Stark was going to play fair.

"So only Tony knows where they are?" He asked sarcastically.

"No, sir. The obstacles were set up by Miss Potts two years ago. Mister Stark has not been here since before that and did not ask for details concerning the new security. Only she has knowledge as to their location besides myself."

Great.

"Thanks JARVIS."

"Of course, sir."

No use worrying about what was to come. He just needed to be on alert and as quick as possible. There was no way he was going to give Tony the satisfaction of winning his own stupid challenge.

* * *

"Damn it." He muttered as he rubbed his forehead. Where the hell had that branch come from? He knows it hadn't been there a minute ago; it must have been one of the obstacles Pepper set up. The covered hole, the incoming log, the fishnet, the falling bamboo, the bloody dull arrow... he should really learn to never underestimate her. He thought as he rubbed his sore side where the arrow had hit him.

"Sir, you seem to have a slight mark on your fore-"

"YES!" He cleared his throat before speaking again, this time in a lower voice. "Yes, I assume I do. Thank you JARVIS." Tony replied while still rubbing his forehead. That had hurt more than he was willing to admit. When he had asked Pepper to set up some kind of security, he hadn't expected her to be so, thorough. Didn't she worry about hurting someone too bad? Well, obviously she was thinking about some kind of criminal... No, she might have had him in mind as she set them up; probably imagining him getting beat up.

More on alert, he continued his pace towards his mansion. It had been nearly an hour since he had landed and he was starting to get tired from all the abuse he had taken on. The mansion should be about seven miles out, if he wasn't mistaken or concussed. He just needed to pick up his pace and be careful in avoiding more traps, he wanted to get there in one piece after all.

He wondered how the others were doing and if they were having as much fun as he was. He would have asked JARVIS but knew he wouldn't give out any details concerning his teammates. He could only hope they were going through the same or worse, yes, definitely worse situation. Thinking back to his teammates, he had to admit he kind of liked them. Sure, they all had their issues, some worse than others but they had stuck with him. Even after they had saved the world and had come back from their break, they stayed with him. He knew he wasn't the easiest person to get along with. Hell, Pepper reminded him of that fact every chance she got but they still accepted him. Before Afghanistan, he only had her to rely on, to help him get through the simplest and most difficult things. Now, he had people he could actually call friends.

"Great, now I sound like Pepper." He mumbled as he ran a hand thorugh his messed up hair.

"Sir?" JARVIS asked not understanding what he was talking about.

"Oh, nothing. Just musing to myself. Don't pay me any attention."

"You programmed me for that specific reason, sir."

Tony stopped moving. He _had_ programmed JARVIS with that particular reason in mind. It wasn't the only reason or the important one but he had originally thought as JARVIS as someone to talk to. Wow, he was pathetic.

"Right. Well, just ignore whatever I say at this moment."

"Understood."

He had been lonely before. Pepper had mentioned that as one of the reasons he was such a womanizer. Hm. Now that he had more people he could count on, he realized it had been lonliness. He could compare the before and now and knew he very much preferred the now.

"DAMN IT!" He shouted thirty minutes later. He wasn't sure whether to be proud or angry at Pepper. What the hell was she thinking setting up a stream with some rabbid piranha! He sat down to inspect his ankle, it was still there. Good.

"Do you require medical assistance, sir?"

Count to ten, he thought to himself. Count to ten and breathe, damn it! If he had pulled out a second later, he wasn't sure he'd still have a foot!

"Why did Pepper bring piranhas to MY ISLAND?" This was the last straw. She needed help and by God he was going to give it to her.

"Those are not piranhas, sir. They're known as pacu. While in the same family as the piranha, their teeth are not-"

"They're not? Are you sure, cause they look like bloody piranhas." He says with slight embarrassment. When the fish had nibbled on his foot, he had looked at it and swore it was the flesh-eating kind. Now that he thought about it, he might have overreacted before paying more attention to details. Screw details! If it _had_ been a piranha, those extra seconds would have cost him his foot!

"I'm most certain, sir. They were meant to give off the illusion of piranhas."

"Well, it worked. Um, keep this between us." He ordered with as much dignity as he could muster before standing and looking into the clear stream at the fish. "I'll uh, I'll just cross this now."

"Of course, sir. Whenever you're ready."

Tony glared at the trees, not sure where JARVIS was coming from but wanting to let him know he didn't appreciate the comment. He takes a deep breath and quickly crosses the stream, just in case.

"There. Now, let's go home."

* * *

There you have it, chapter two. It was originally going to be just two chapters but I decided to go into a bit more detail for each Avenger, hope that's ok. I'm sorry if they seem kind of OOC but I don't think I did that bad. Let me know either way, please?


	3. Chapter 3

Ok, so here's the final chapter of my first ever multi-chapter published story! I'm really proud of myself for finishing and publishing this even if it's not perfect. We have to start somewhere, right? The last part might make more sense if you read Letting Go but it should be ok if you don't.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters just the plot and mistakes. I would love to own them though, keep them in my room as decoration.

Oh! And congrats to all those who've written an Avenger story, we're officially number eighteen (as of this minute) in the movie category! Yes, I have no life. Enjoy!

* * *

"Son of a bi-" He was cut off as he tripped on a vine, he hadn't even seen it. Quickly, he stood back up and kept running ahead. It was nearing nightfall so he knew he had to hurry if he was going to reach his destination soon.

"Mister Barton, if you-"

"I'm good JARVIS, don't worry about me, I know what I'm doing. I told you I wouldn't kill it and I won't." He panted as he reached a stream and stopped. He looked into the clear water and flinched. He was going to die. After all his close encounters with death on dangerous missions, he was going to die during a stupid training exercise. He turned back but couldn't see or hear the monster that had been chasing him for the past hour. He wasn't even sure of what the hell it was, just that it wanted to kill him. Now, he was trapped. He could either turn back and face the beast or take his chances at crossing the piranha infested stream.

_Screech_

Decision made, he jumped into the stream while swatting away anything that got too close. Making his was away across, he felt something land on his shoulders forcing him under the water and causing him to swallow some. He grabbed the beast as he stood up, swinging it away. Then, while gasping for oxygen, finally made it to the other side. He sat down glaring at the animal who was screeching viciously, frustrated he could not cross. Laughing, Clint carefully stood up before running a hand through his damped hair. He checked for any obvious injuries the piranha may have caused but he seemed fine.

"What I tell you, I can do this just fine without a cheat-sheet." The others may use JARVIS for the basics but he didn't need it. He was more than capable of handling things on his own, he was a trained agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. after all. Even without his trusted bow, he could handle a few wild animals and the little traps that had been set up. He laughed at the traps, he could go through them in his sleep! "Not to put you down or anything JARVIS but I managed to fend off a savage mutated bird AND made it through a stream filled with flesh-eating fish. How did I do?" He asked with a proud grin.

"You did quite well, sir. However, I would like to point out several things which might help you in future situations."

"Sure, go ahead." Clint replied as he started making his was toward the mansion. It had been an amazing drop from the plane, one he wouldn't soon forget. While he had jumped out of planes and off buildings before, nothing felt as exhilarating as doing it for no reason at all. The way gravity toyed with him, the way the parachute pulled him back up when it deployed, when land came into view and when he landed in a pool of mud. There was no greater feeling than being in control of something that could go so wrong in a matter of seconds. It had been liberating to say the least. Then, finding the island had several traps, spotting most of them, escaping the rest with only a few scratches and bruises and then the wild animals? This had been fun, it really had.

"If you have someone trying to help you, I would suggest taking the time to listen. What I was trying to tell you earlier was that the animal you left on the other side is a flightless King Vulture. When you ran through the trees, you managed to pull along its prey. If you look down, you will notice the deceased squirrel tangled within your pants cords; the animal was simply chasing its dinner. All you had to do was give it back and you could have proceeded without worry. If you had done that, you would have noticed the fish were not piranha but puca, a fish that would not have hurt you. You would have saved yourself an hour and might have been at the mansion already."

Clint stood silently, not sure of what to say. He looked down and noticed the remains of a squirrel. How could a computer program make him feel like a reprimanded child? Slowly, he pulled the dead animal off and kicked it to the side. He swallowed before turning to one of the trees which had a speaker. "I'm sorry JARVIS. I did sound pretty cocky, didn't I?" It's not like he did it on purpose, it just came naturally to the assassin. Although, ever since he became a part of this crazy team, he'd learned some things about himself. Sometimes, he needed help and it wasn't so bad to ask for it every now and then.

"No more than usual, sir. It is understandable under the situation, all is forgiven." Clint couldn't help but grin. He'd been humbled by a computer, Tony's computer no less. He could just imagine what the Iron Man would say...on second thought, he didn't want to think about it.

"How about we keep this between us, no need to tell anybody else, right?" Tony would never let him leave it down, Steve would just look at him with mild pity, knowing Clint was still too closed off, Bruce would just smile understandably and Natasha, well, he didn't think she would actually say anything. They were both very similar when it came to keeping to themselves, she wouldn't be one to judge.

"Of course, sir." Glad they had an understanding, he kept moving in the direction of the mansion but stopped suddenly. He returned to where he had kicked the squirrel, picked it up and went back to the stream where the vulture was still screeching. He threw it over and the animal easily caught it before turning back. No use in ruining its dinner, right?

* * *

Cracking her back, she stood up feeling better. That last stunt had managed to surprise her, if she wasn't so flexible she was sure she would have sprained several muscles. Who would have thought Pepper had such a creative mind when it came to designing traps? Tony should be careful around her, she could really hurt him if she wanted. A slight noise drew her attention to the tree besides her, she reached for her gun but remembered she'd left her weapons in the plane. _'Stupid Tony and his stupid rules.'_ Her eyes widened at what she saw wrapped in the branch.

"JARVIS, is that a pit viper?" She knew they were in Central America but somehow, she hadn't expected to see something so deadly on Tony's island. The sky-diving, the silly traps, even the darts had been fine but she crossed the line at deadly snakes. If there was one thing she hated, it was snakes. Of course, nobody knew that, not even Clint. It was a weakness she was never going to share with anybody, it would be too dangerous.

"I'm afraid it is. Lachesis stenophrys, quite poisonous if you were to get bitten. Its poison has been known to cause severe organ failure, I would recommend slowly backing away, it will not attack unless provoked. There are many here on the island." No problem with that, she wouldn't get close enough to even scare it. Slowly, she began to back away when she heard heavy footsteps approaching at fast speeds. Looking around, she knew she wouldn't get too far if she ran so she did the next best thing, she jumped grabbing a low branch and made her way up into the tree. A few seconds later, the hulk came barging through, knocking down the trees in his way. She watched him completely destroy the tree with the snake, she wondered if it had escape and couldn't help but feel relief that it was gone. Unfortunately, it was short lived when Hulk turned her way and growled. Well, that was her cue. She jumped down and slowly raised her hands in quiet surrender.

"Hey, it's just me." She quickly noticed, he didn't have any pants. There he was, green and naked. "What happened to your pants?" Not many things surprised her, this was not one of them. Trying hard to keep her gaze on his face, she tried again. "You're not wearing any pan-well, anything."

"Too small." She would have to disagree. Oh, the pants. The pants had been too small and ripped off. She would have laughed if she hadn't been slightly startled by the snake. The viper, she meant the viper of course. Giving a slight nod, she walked towards him.

"So, you want to get out of here? We should be reaching the mansion in about twenty or thirty minutes." Feeling more relaxed, she lowered her arms and walked past him but never turning her back to him. "I doubt anybody else has reached it considering the obstacles." They picked up speed as Natasha watched Hulk take down the trees, hopefully avoiding any more silly traps. She was so distracted by the hulk, she missed a very important warning sound until it was too late. It all happened much too fast for her liking. Before she knew it, she was on her knees feeling a terrible pain shoot up through her left leg. "Damn it!" Her panicked shout reached Hulk making him turn back to see what was wrong when he noticed the culprit slithering away. He let out a loud growl and was about to step on it when he heard Natasha telling him to kill it but not destroy it. They would need it just in case Tony didn't have any AntiVenom prepared.

"I have disabled all the traps and alerted the rest of the team. They should be reaching the mansion shortly. I believe there is AntiVenom but my files are not up to date, I would recommend you take the body as a precaution." JARVIS announced making Natasha relax a bit. She looked at Hulk and grinned.

"This would be awkward if I wasn't dying but you think you can carry me back? I can't feel my leg anymore." She held back a groan but was already feeling all sensation leaving. The belt she had tied off above her knee was probably not going to do much. She really hated snakes. If she had to be carried by a naked hulk to survive then so be it. She would kick whosever ass laughed or made any stupid remark about it. Hulk didn't need to be told twice, he quickly picked her up and held her close to his chest while he held the dead snake away from her. This was something she would not forget anytime soon, Natasha was not a damsel in distress, ever. This would certainly mar her semi-perfect record. "No pressure but-" This time she couldn't hold back the painful groan. She could feel her heart beating fast, that was never a good sign. "Just hurry." She managed to whisper before digging her nails into hulk who picked up his pace again, if that were possible.

They made it to the mansion in less than five minutes but the team wasn't there yet. Hulk set Natasha down on the large sofa after he broke through the doors. "You might want to calm down. Go outside and try to calm down. Just leave the snake somewhere not close to me." She said softly not sure if he would listen. She was a bit surprised to see him do just that. Bruce would be better help with the AntiVenom and hopefully nobody would know she'd seen a naked hulk. "Hey JARVIS, don't mention his nakedness." Was that even a word? Right now she didn't care if it was or not, all she wanted was to cut off her leg to stop the burning pain.

"Of course miss." At that moment, Tony came running to her side. She noticed he was dirty and sweaty, guess he'd had as much fun as she.

"How you feeling?" He asked out of breath before spotting the snake towards the side.

"I'm dying, how do you think I'm feeling?" She tightened her arms around her stomach and let her eyes close when she felt a sharp pain. Tony said something she didn't catch before he ran off somewhere. Her insides felt like they were on fire. She wasn't sure how much time had passed but knew she didn't have much to spare. This would be a terrible way to go, maybe she deserved it after everything she'd done.

"No, you don't deserve this. You're going to be alright." She heard somebody say as she felt a cool, wet cloth placed on her forehead. Trying to open her eyes, she realized she couldn't. "Tony gave you the AntiVenom, it should start kicking in any second now. You're going to be ok." That was good to know. Something stirred in her stomach and before she could say anything, she turned to her side and emptied its contents. Once she was done, she laid back down and felt another cloth being placed. This was so embarrassing, so not her. She hated feeling weak and having to need help, it was a sign of weakness. Almost like her stupid fear of snakes.

"You're afraid of snakes?" She would have kicked his ass if she'd been able to. That would teach him to read her mind. "I'm not reading your mind, you just said that out lou-oof" Grateful to whoever shut him up, she felt herself fading off into a deep sleep.

* * *

"You didn't have to hit me. I was merely stating the obvious, did you know she was scared of snakes?" Tony asked Clint as they, along with Steve, made their way into the kitchen. Bruce stayed behind with his patient.

"Leave it alone, Stark. You'll regret it if you mention this again. Especially to her." Clint warned dangerously letting them know it was not up for discussion. Of course, Tony failed to either see the warning or just chose to ignore it.

"You didn't know. Hm. I guess you two keep secrets even from one another." This time he did notice the dangerous glare he was given by both men. "I won't say anything to her, I was curious is all." He didn't want them to see he was a bit hurt by their words. He knew not to use Natasha's fear of snakes as ammunition, it was low, even for him. Not to mention, a snake had almost ended her life today. There was nothing funny about that.

"You didn't mention there would be deadly snakes, Tony." Steve said trying to hold back his anger.

"It's an island Captain, I can't just get rid of whatever I don't like. Well, I could but Pepper said it wasn't right to get rid of the animals since they were here first. You know how she is with all that crap." Although he did feel like setting fire to anything poisonous at the moment. "I don't get it though, she's a trained agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. so how could she not have seen that thing?" Clint and Steve wondered the same thing. She wasn't one for missing important details in anything. They sat down while Tony went to get them all some coffee.

"She's still human, she might have just not seen it." Sighed Steve, all previous anger fading with worry taking its place. This was suppose to be a training exercise, not some life or death stunt. He should have known something like this would happen, they never seemed to be able to enjoy any activity without someone getting sick, paralyzed, a concussion, almost dying or in Bruce's case, hulking out. He should start getting used to it. "I'm just glad you had the AntiVenom ready, things could have been a whole lot worse otherwise." He noticed how quiet Clint was, his hands formed into fists on the table. "She's going to be ok Clint, you heard what Bruce said."

"Yea, you heard the doctor. Besides, do you really think she'd let some little animal take her out when she's survived God knows how many near death experiences? She's a tough cookie, she'll be fine." Tony said trying to be assuring but Clint just shrugged. They didn't know her like he did. They hadn't seen her defeated eyes last week either. They were right about one thing, there's no way she could have been taken by surprise by some snake. When JARVIS had informed them about what had happened he wasn't sure whether to believe it. Natasha suffered from a major case of ophidiophobia, she was terrified of snakes to the point of watching out for them everywhere. He would talk to her when she was better, he had some questions that needed answers. Hearing the door open, they all turned to see Bruce walk in with a tired but relieved expression.

"Her fever's going down, the blood test showed no sign of organ failure and she's regaining color. All in all, I'd say she was very lucky we got the AntiVenom to her in time." They all visibly relaxed. Clint nodded his thanks before heading back to Natasha's side. Bruce took his seat and closed his eyes. "What did you add to the AntiVenom Tony?" Bruce asked rubbing his eyes. He was no fool, he'd seen these types of bites before and knew there was no possible way she could make it out with absolutely no damage to her organs with just the AntiVenom. Steve gave him a confused look before turning to Tony who didn't feel like lying at the moment.

"It's a serum to regenerate tissue. It's still in the testing phase but I knew it would work." He added quickly seeing Steve's incredulous stare. "I had a worker who was bitten several years ago. He got the AntiVenom no more than twenty minutes after he was bit but the damage to his organs was severe. He died a few days later. Ever since then, I'd been trying to do something in cell reconstruction and I think it's coming out ok." He was really hoping they wouldn't ask what he thought they were thinking.

"Is Natasha the first one to use it?" So much for hoping.

"I would love to sit here and say no but I would rather point out the fact that she's alright and will continue to be alright because of my work. I'd been researching this for years Cap, I knew it would work." He gave them what he hoped was his most assuring smile. No need to tell them it had been more of a 50/50 kind of thing. They didn't look too convinced but were too thankful it had worked to really complain at the moment. "Now that the danger has passed, I need to order a new set of doors." He stood up and headed upstairs leaving the two men with their coffees.

"I don't know whether to praise his work or strangle him to death." Sighed Steve. Bruce chuckled in understanding, he was still working on trying to figure out how Tony worked but wasn't sure he'd ever figure him out.

* * *

Three days of bedrest and much coddling, Natasha felt like snapping each and everyones neck. She had told them she was fine and had even used Bruce's findings as proof but they insisted she take it easy for a few more days. They would take turns staying with her either in her room or outside but was never left alone in case her symptoms returned. Through that time, she did notice that Clint wasn't himself. He would show up, sit down, discretely glance her way every few minutes, say he's glad she's ok then leave. It really wasn't like him to look so, well, not himself. Finally, after two more days, she'd had enough. When he came in she'd been reading a book which she threw at him the second he sat down. He'd easily caught it before glaring at her.

"What the hell was that for? If you want something else to read all you have to do is ask." She folded her arms across her chest while giving him a cold stare waiting for him to say something else. "What?" Nothing. He looked at her trying to figure out if he'd done something to piss her off but nothing came to mind. "Want to tell me what I did wrong?" She narrowed her eyes which only made him feel a bit uneasy but still couldn't figure out why she was upset. "Why the hell are you mad at me? If anything I should be mad at you." Now they were getting somewhere. He threw the book across the room then stood up abruptly before starting to pace around the room. "Didn't you think I'd figure it out? What the hell were you thinking?" That made no sense to Natasha, what was he talking about? She voiced her thoughts to which he gave a frustrated groan. "I know you better than to think a simple snake got the jump on you. There is no way in hell you wouldn't see a stupid snake nearby especially with how much they scare you." She felt her eye slightly twitch but gave no other sign he'd surprised her with that. She really thought he hadn't known about that. "You look for snakes everywhere."

"Clint, what the hell is your problem? I got bit but I'm fine now, care to share why you're taking this way too seriously?" She chose not to mention her fear of snakes. He clenched his fists before standing right over her. To anybody else he might have looked intimidating but to her, he was just annoying. He let out a frustrated sigh before falling down into his chair.

"We've both done things that we might regret but life goes on. We're apart of something that does good for people, isn't that enough for now? Isn't that something, I don't know, worth living for?" She searched his face for some sign of anything when his words reached her ears. Oh. Did he really think she'd...oh. Well, it all made sense now.

"I can assure you, I'm perfectly fine. The only reason this happened was because I was caught off guard. It's stupid and I never should have been distracted enough to let this happen but it did so this is my fault. Whatever you thought happened, let it go. You're wrong and I'm fine." He still didn't look convinced but there was no way she was going to tell him what had kept her distracted. She'd rather let him think she was suicidal than some curious girl. "Do you trust me?" She asked him seriously to which he gave her a nod without hesitation. "Then know I'm fine and it won't happen again." She gave him a slight smile which he returned after a few seconds."And Bruce mentioned I won so let Tony know I will ask for my prize when I need it." He finally relaxed in his seat and tossed her phone at her which she easily caught.

"Sure thing and Pepper said to call her, she wanted to apologize. For some reason she feels responsible." At that moment, Tony walked in with a grin.

"So Natasha, a very guilt-ridden Bruce confessed to being responsible for your incident." She glared at him when Clint stood up looking upset again.

"Stark, if you know what's good for you, I suggest you leave. Now. Clint, sit down." She left no room for argument and the archer slowly sat back down. Tony, on the other hand, just continued to grin in the doorway.

"Was it like the jolly green giant?" He smirked. Clint looked at her confused, what the hell were they talking about? Before he could ask, Natasha threw the cellphone straight into the Iron Man's face, making him fall back as he held his bleeding nose. "You boke by dose!" He groaned in pain while Natasha smiled happily.

"Jealousy is very ugly Tony, your nose will match it perfectly." Clint just sighed. He'd figure it out later.

* * *

So there you have it. Like I said, this is my first multi-chapter story, I have no beta so all mistakes are mine and I really do hope you enjoyed it. Let me know if you did or if you have any comments. Thank you!


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